Rail projects under way, notably the high-speed line linking Tangier and Marrakech, will transform transport and mobility in Morocco by 2029, Transport and Logistics Minister Abdessamad Kayouh told the House of Representatives’ infrastructure committee that was examining his department’s 2027 budget.
Kayouh said the line will allow travelers to cover a Tangier-Rabat trip in one hour and Rabat to Mohammed V airport in 35 minutes, a journey time he said no current transport mode can match. He also reviewed regional train projects in Casablanca, Rabat and Marrakech, covered by agreements between the regions and the national rail operator ONCF, which he said will ease road congestion in those cities.
Casablanca was chosen because it is Morocco’s largest conurbation and suffers heavy rush-hour traffic, he explained, adding that the master plan is open to extending such services to other areas with similar population density.
On air-rail links, Kayouh said connecting Mohammed V airport to the high-speed line will let long-haul passengers continue by train to Marrakech. He also raised the possibility of selling air and rail tickets as one journey. He said Royal Air Maroc’s growing long-haul network increases the importance of this integration, given the airport’s new facilities, which can handle 40 million passengers a year.
On shipping, he said building a strong, competitive national merchant fleet, in line with the King’s 2023 Green March anniversary speech, requires government guarantees, financial and tax incentives and a legislative commitment. Some 97% of Morocco’s imports and exports travel by sea. The first national maritime conference in Tangier in May reached consensus on the need for such a fleet, he recalled.